Nurturing homes required for Somerset’s most vulnerable children

Fostering in Somerset graphic featuring a child refugee in a heart, captioned: 'Do you have room in your home to support an asylum-seeking child?'

Somerset urgently needs more foster carers to provide nurturing homes for Somerset’s most vulnerable children, including foster homes for Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) who have been forced to leave their families and seek safety in a new country.

To help highlight the urgent need for more foster homes for children across the county, Fostering In Somerset will be holding an Information Session on Monday 28 April in partnership with CHARIS Refugees.

This informal session will provide an opportunity to find out more about fostering over a hot drink without any presentations or pressure to take your interest further. The session is just a chance to learn more about fostering, including caring for Asylum Seeking Children. You can hear more about carer Glyn and his UASC fostering journey by watching our YouTube video.

Although there’ll be a focus on fostering UASC during the session, the team can answer questions and provide information on all different types of fostering, from mainstream care of local children to more flexible roles such as occasional care, providing a home and support for a foster child as little as one weekend a month.

From basic requirements and weekly payments to training and application – you'll have an opportunity to find out everything you need to know about the realistic challenges and rewards of the role.

Join us anytime between 10am and 1pm at the Taunton Refugees Hub (The CHARIS Rooms, Hammet Street, Taunton TA1 1RZ) on 28 April, but it’s advised to arrive no later than 12.30pm to allow adequate time to chat.

For more information, visit Fostering in Somerset’s Asylum Seeking Children page or call 0800 587 9900. You’re not committing to anything by getting in touch to find out more, and you could help change a child’s story.